GOODWILL GAMES ROUNDUP : U.S. Basketball Team Cruises, Braces for Italy

George Raveling has a dozen concerns about his young American basketball team’s Goodwill Games semifinal against Italy.

“The 12 players that wear the uniform that says Italy on it, they all worry me,” Raveling said, after the United States defeated winless China, 99-80, on Monday.

Wednesday’s other semifinal pits Puerto Rico against undefeated Russia.

Monday’s victory partly atoned for Sunday’s 77-75 loss to Russia, a match in which the young Americans had the jitters most of the way.

The team of collegiate players was more or less in command against China. Lou Roe of Massachusetts led the scoring with 19 points and Michael Finley of Wisconsin came off the bench to score 16, including 13 in the first half.

China’s top scorer was Sun Jun with 20 points.

“To us, this is like an Olympics,” Finley said. “Any time, as a collegian, you have a chance to represent your country when the pros are now in the Olympics--we look at it as the Olympics.

“It was like we were out of synch coming into the Russia game. Our game is to run, we didn’t get into that tempo last night and not all the time today. I think our best game is yet to come.”

The Americans scored mostly on transition baskets and had a wide edge in rebounding. But even those advantages came only in spurts.

“We’re probably the most impatient offensive team in this tournament,” Raveling said.

“We have a whole team of guys who are used to having the ball.”

When the game was tied early at 12-12, Shawn Respert of Michigan State scored eight consecutive points in about two minutes to push the Americans ahead, 20-14.

But it was the 6-foot-6 Finley who provided an even more decisive lift. He scored nine points in less than three minutes to make it 33-20 with 7:41 left in the half.

“He’s been our most consistent player in the three games here at both ends of the floor,” Raveling said of Finley.

Raveling said his No. 1 concern with the undefeated Italians is 6-11 Gregor Fucka, his team’s leading scorer in three games with an average of 13.3 points.

“He moves well for a big man, shoots with both hands and passes the ball extremely well,” Raveling said. “He’s probably the best rebounder in the tournament.”

The Italians also have the edge in experience.

“They’ve been together three years, we have three weeks,” Raveling said.

In the three other games Monday, Brazil defeated Croatia, 98-94; Italy beat Puerto Rico, 83-69, and Russia defeated Argentina, 89-80.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL

In an all-American battle in the semifinal round, Carlos Briceno of Fountain Valley and Jeff Williams of Santa Monica upset beach volleyball star Sinjin Smith of Pacific Palisades and Bruk Vandeweghe of Beverly Hills, 15-7.

Briceno and Williams will face Norway’s Jan Kvalhein and Bjoern Naaseide, who defeated Australia 15-10, for the gold medal.

American women split a pair with Brazilian teams.

Unbeaten Karolyn Kirby and Liz Masakayan of San Diego won, 15-10, while Barbara Fontana of Laguna Beach and Lori Forsythe of Encinitas lost, 15-9. Kirby and Masakayan are in the final.

BOXING

U.S. champion Carlos Navarro stopped Germany’s Rene Schultz in the second round to advance to the semifinals in the 112-pound class.